Darling's 25th Week Update

 Merry Christmas Everyone!!!

 

Little Darling's Size: His see-through skin is gradually becoming more opaque. Between 13.6 inches to 14.8 inches. About the size of an eggplant!

 

Countdown: 103 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: Now that I'm back east..I'm on the hunt for a nice maternity warm warm jacket!

What I Miss: Crumbs falling to the floor...and NOT landing on my tummy :)

Cravings: Nothing much at the moment...

Exercising:  ha..we are back east..we will see what happens! we did a TON of walking..last week!

 
Symptoms: My cold is slowing going away..good news!  Just getting bigger!

Total Weight Gain: 11lbs as of last appointment...

 

Gender: ITS A LITTLE MAN!!!! We decided to keep his name a secret till the day of his birth!

Sleep: Not good..but not horrible! Up at least three times a night to the bathroom!

Movement: ALL THE TIME, MOVEMENT!!! Except when my Mother is around he gets all shy...

On a Positive Note: We are officially back east! Went house shopping today..and oh boy! CULTURE SHOCK! but I think we found a place...will fill out an application tomorrow...fingers crossed!

A Message To Our Darling: I can't wait to start buying things for your nursery!!! Now that you will finally have a room!!! I can start actually buying instead of dreaming!! We got you two more LA shirts...and yes one is a Lakers shirt!! I just couldn't resist..its your Daddy's fav team!

Goodbye Cali...

Bittersweet week....bittersweet day for us...

What a perfect picture to end our amazing journey in the Southbay!

Taken tonight..at sunset! Manhattan Beach 

Just about 25 weeks!

My Parent's Message

This past weekend we were able to get together with our Los Angeles friends for a baby shower/going away get together! After we were done opening our baby gifts we had a special message awaiting us! I just had to share.. Watch my Father at the end.... hilarious!

I was tearing up..then laughing! Oh, my Father and his funny expressions at the end! What a thoughtful thing to do!! It was just perfect!!  Its moments like this...make me realize again and again how lucky I am to have amazing parents!  I will try to gather some pictures taken at the party once I get my paws on them! 

We leave for the East Coast in 5 days!

Darling's 24th Week Update

Bump Pic!

Hermosa Beach

Little Darling's Size: His see-through skin is gradually becoming more opaque. Between 10.5-to-11.8-inches.

 

Countdown: 112 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: I actually nabbed a cute dressy shirt at Old Navy in their tiny maternity section!

What I Miss: Holiday drinks!!Feeling sexy in my clothes ;)

Cravings: Just the food I know I won't be able to get once we move back east!

Exercising:  Lots of walking!!! Enjoying our strand for one last week!!

 
Symptoms: Nothing really...been fighting a cold for over a week... I'm miserable!

Total Weight Gain: 11lbs!

 

Gender: ITS A LITTLE MAN!!!! We decided to keep his name a secret till the day of his birth!

Sleep: Not good..but not horrible!

Movement: ALL THE TIME, MOVEMENT!!! Several of my friends have had an opportunity to feel him move!

On a Positive Note: We are trying to make the best of our last week here in the Southbay! Oh my!! I'm excited to be able to be home around the Holidays!

A Message To Our Darling: Oh,  your Daddy and I snatched up a little gift for you! When you wear it...we will remember the beautiful day we had in Hermosa Beach today!  (pic below) 

Johnny Cash song, "Walk the Line."  Well, the shirt says, "Crawl the Line." 

Mr. Southbay was like, "We have to get this!"

End of Week Ramblings..

I created two different types of holiday cards this year! Every year, we typically have our picture taken professionally..but this year with zero time I figured we would just use one of the pictures taken from our Gender Reveal Party! 

The second one came about because I won 25 free Shutterfly Cards! Saved me over $45!!!  They turned out cute and the quality was really nice too! I can't believe I even remembered to get Christmas cards out this year with how crazy our lives have been lately.. Though, I will admit not everyone that I normally send a card to is getting one this year... But, I did the best I could! 

Sorry, took a pic off the computer screen! I sent them out as soon as I got my paws on them and totally forgot to take a picture! So unlike me :)

Regardless of anything, its the thought that counts right?! 

We had a follow up OB appointment today! It was so nice to hear the heart beat! He is getting big! I weighed in at 134.8lbs today. So far I have gained approx 12 pounds. Not too shabby I must say! I have been fighting a cold for the past week. This coughing is for the birds... Specifically in the afternoon to bed time! So, the Doctor put me on some meds..all of which I'm hesitant to take but after 7 days...I feel like I have no choice.. been drinking a TON of fluids...especially hot water with lemon!  

Tomorrow some of my friends are throwing Mr. Southbay and I a baby shower/going away party. It will be nice to see everyone one last time! We want to be closer to family but at the same time we LOVE living in the Southbay of Los Angeles!  It is definitely a bittersweet moment for us... 

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

Darling's 23rd Week Update

Bump Pic!

Tonight, we were out in Manhattan Beach for the Holiday fireworks and music! Had a delicious dinner at The Strand House. (take a lookie!)
We watched the fireworks from where we were seated!

Little Darling's Size: His face is fully formed now -- He just needs a little extra fat to fill it out.  Can you believe it!

Countdown: 119 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: Loving my pregnancy jeans....!

What I Miss: Holiday drinks!!

Cravings: nothing specific... ! call me boring...

Exercising:  Work is my exercise..at the moment! Now the Mr. Southbay is back home all the time, we are going on a lot of walks..Pier to Pier which is a good several miles long!

 
Symptoms: Fatigue!  My feet and calves burn at the end of each day!

Total Weight Gain: No Idea, will learn more about this Friday at my next OB appointment!

 

Gender: ITS A LITTLE MAN!!!! We decided to keep his name a secret till the day of his birth!

Sleep: Not good..but not horrible!

Movement: ALL THE TIME, MOVEMENT!!! Seriously, just squishing my bladder!!!!!!!!!!! it gets very uncomfortable...

On a Positive Note: Are prayers have been answered! Mr. Southbay's job has transferred us to Maryland! Off to the Patuxent River Naval Air Base we go!  I'll be doing a post later with more details about our move! This move will be occurring at Christmas..yes that FAST!

A Message To Our Darling:  With us moving back now I can start focusing on nursery furniture...your nursery..colors...patterns...ohh, Mommy is getting excited!  But please, no more bladder squishing!! :)

It's A Boy-The Reaction :)

Part two of Gender Reveal Party :)

Once we had dinner...and did a little clean up, the soon to be Grandparents were getting antzy! It seriously felt like I had a huge group of 5 year olds! My Mother was the worst :)  Lets get to the pictures!

The soon to be Grandparents!

Oh and the Great-Grandmothers!

Yes, I am counting to three, and can you see my Mother in pink...is the first to take a bite?!

I love, how they are all looking at the cupcakes and great grandmothers are not even touching their cupcakes!

Yes, my parents are doing a little dance!

I LOVE how we caught this moment... My Mother was so emotional :)

Jasmine from The Couture Cakery , whipped up some delicious gender reveal cupcakes for us! Yellow and orange sprinkles to finish it off! 

Our two little pups also had to participate! I had Glamour Dog Boutique over at Etsy create these adorable bandanas for the pups! They were seriously a big hit!

Miss Eli Mae, who will be a Big Sister :)

Our Little Man Kingston Jay...Big Brother!

They turned out super cute!

Our Gender Reveal Party was a ton of fun! I'm so glad we decided to throw one and we were able to share it with our friends and families!

Vendors

Invitations by Detailish

Cupcakes by The Couture Cakery

Dog Bandanas by The Glamour Dog Boutique

Paper Supplies by Shop Sweet Lulu

Darling's 22nd Week Update

Bump Pic!

Little Darling's Size: A Papaya in size! Now that he's got more developed eyes and lips, he's looking even more like a newborn! Measures about 10.5 to 11.8 inches.

Countdown: 126 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: Made out great when I was back East with Mom! Two more pairs of jeans..3 more shirts for a total of $100! Can't beat it!! Thank you Boscovs!

What I Miss: A big glass of red wine!! Especially on these chilly nights!

Cravings: nothing specific... ! call me boring...

Exercising:  Work is my exercise..at the moment! We did a couple mile walk on the strand..and went at a great pace..felt good to get some fresh air! I'm starting to huff and puff!

 
Symptoms: haha...oh I could go into some stuff.. We should do a segment.. on "Symptoms, they don't  talk  about." :)  Still, must eat smaller meals...I get full super fast!

Total Weight Gain: 8 pounds total from lastweek..but the way my tummy is..at least another pound!

 

Gender: ITS A LITTLE MAN!!!! Oh, we finally broke down and snatched up some adorable Little Man gear on black Friday!

Sleep: Not good..but not horrible!

Movement: ALL THE TIME, MOVEMENT!!! Seriously, just squishing my bladder!!!!!!!!!!! it gets very uncomfortable...

On a Positive Note: We are back out in La La Land! I brought the cold air with...ugh!  Still on the job hunt... Praying... Praying for the strength that all will work out...

A Message To Our Darling: Oh Little Man, you need to sleep a little more... :) all this moving and squishing on my bladder is really driving me crazy :) but I still love you... !!!  
Your Daddy and I have been working on the perfect name for you! I think we have it pretty much figured out... but who knows! I'm anxious to see if with stick to it! Don't worry, we will keep it a surprise till we meet face to face! 

WOW is time flying by!!!! 22 Weeks already!

 

Gender Reveal Party Details!

Here are some fun details and pictures from our amazing night with family and friends!

We only invited our parents, grandparents, siblings and close friends! Appetizers to start and a lasagna dinner to follow! It was held the night before Thanksgiving, so I figured an Italian meal would be perfect!  Oh gosh, where do we begin!

Remember these cute invites?

Click over here to see an earlier post on my inspiration for the party!

Lets get to details! My Grandmother helped sew together a long table runner...I loved the bright orange polka-dot material I found at the fabric store! I snatched up some yellow flowers at the grocery store... very easy and affordable! We already had the vases..

The appetizer table was put together using all of my "cravings" so far in the pregnancy! My personal favorite..are the macaroni and cheese cups! yum  yum! I didn't put too much out because we were serving such a filling dinner!

I snatched up the tiny cups over at Shop Sweet Lulu. I look forward to ordering more in the future from them! Great company!

I found two tiny pinwheels at Hobby Lobby..my Nephews loved taking something home with them! They added that cute factor on the table!

Pineapple and canteloupe skewers! 

Reeses Pieces! 

Of course I had to get some orange straws! Another purchase from Shop Sweet Lulu. We threw in a couple orange slices into the water..

Not only did it match our theme...it was delicious! 

I decorated the mantle with candles, a framed invite and some colorful decor!

I used many glass vases from our wedding, including the frame! It was so nice to be able to reuse things!! It saved a lot of money! It has been a very long time since I made a chain link from construction paper :) 

I used the ribbon vases for my Brother's dinner rehearsal last June! It is so easy to simply change up the ribbon! Click over here to so a video for a DIY idea! I originally found this idea from Jessica over at Tying the Knot. It added the perfect amount of color!

We left up some decorations for a couple of days! I just couldn't take it down right away! 

In my next post, I will share pictures of the soon to be Grandparents finding out the gender :) Along with the delicious cupcakes.  It was definitely a good time!

Darling's 21st Week Update

Bump Pic

yeah, not the most attractive picture!! 
My jeans..are too tiny, had to slide them down around my hips!

Little Darling's Size: A banana! Oh, and we got to see our Little Darling! He is getting bigger!

Countdown: 132 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: oh, I must go shopping... must give in...

What I Miss: A big glass of red wine!!Yep, still :)

Cravings: same old stuff! totally not into fruit...

Exercising:  Lately, not too much, I've been very tired lately.. hopefully I can get back into a routine come the end of this week!

 
Symptoms: My upper back is killing me!!!  Thanks to Mr. Southbay for quick back massages! More fatigue..could be this cold weather!

Total Weight Gain: 8 pounds total... not bad, they say I'm looking good and right on schedule!

Gender: ITS A LITTLE MAN!!!!

Sleep: Since my back is hurting..this is definitely not helping the situation!

Movement: ALL THE TIME, MOVEMENT!!! sometimes I can't fall asleep!

On a Positive Note: We had a great visit home with family and heading back Wednesday to the west coast! It's time to get back to work!

A Message To Our Darling:You are a little man :) It was so exciting to see you on the monitor...to see a 3D image of you! We even have a DVD of the entire session. So, now when I need to see you...having a bad day..I can simply pop it in..and get all happy !!!!

Boy Or Girl?

We had our gender reveal party tonight and it went great! I will share pictures soon! 

But in the mean time... we are having a...

We are so excited to share our news with everyone! 

It was definitely hard to keep it a secret for 24 hours..especially from my Mother! More pictures to come soon!! 

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving..so much to be grateful for this year!

Darling's 20 Week Update

Bump Pics

Little Man snuck in for the picture..He isn't one to be "left out."

Little Man sniffin :)

Little Darling's Size: A cantaloupe!  Approx 6.5 inches. HALF WAY THERE!

Countdown: 140 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: Anything comfy!!!may just purchase another pair of maternity jeans...

What I Miss: A big glass of red wine!!

Cravings: Umm, nothing specific! Though tonight, I had a half of a meatball calzone and OMG it was yummy!

Exercising:  Okay, I won't lie...HORRIBLE.. been on the treadmill for a little but I know once I get back home to LA, I'll get right back into my routine!

 
Symptoms: Nothing to report here..some leg cramps.. but I honestly can not complain. Feeling very blessed about this!

Total Weight Gain: Tuesday, I will find out..YIKES!

Gender: Who knows at this point... !! 2 more days!!  ahhhhhh

Sleep:good and bad... a lot on my mind with Mr. Southbay's job hunt. His program officially ends at the end of December..

Movement: Not sure if this Little Darling ever sleeps... Constant movement! Especially after a spaghetti dinner. Hmmmm  Mr. Southbay felt movement!!!

On a Positive Note: We got back tons of genetic tests, had a little scare, but happy to report results are negative! Nothing is 100%, but the percentage is small. Again-feeling blessed!

A Message To Our Darling:2 more days Little Darling!!!! 2 more days, we get to see you again on the monitor! Not sure if we will find out your gender Tuesday or wait till Wednesday at the party with our family...  Nonetheless, we are excited to see you!

***I posted a poll! Located TOP left!!  What will the gender be? Also, vote on a name!***

 

Little Darling's Room!

I have come to the conclusion that I want something very simple...and warm!  This is my inspiration... Now, I just need to find the goodies..

I thought it would be easy but it hasn't been!

I found this over at Project Nursery! It has been a great source of information and inspiration. The best part...you can find something done on any budget! 

So, my dear readers, if you have any good ideas as to where I can locate these adorable decals and bedding.. please tell!!  I already looked on ETSY !! 

Oh! Mr. Southbay has another East Coast interview next week, so keep your fingers crossed that it could be a possibility!

Darling's 19th Week Update

Bump Pic!

Ya like Kingston in the background eating his dinner !!

I'm back East, so my picture spot will be different! 
Thanks Mom for taking the pic! :)

 

Little Darling's Size: A Mango in size! Approx 6 inches in size!  She is working on her/his 5 senses!

Countdown: 148 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: Got to wear my new maternity jeans..not bad...but they do kinda fall down! Its like there just isn't enough elastic! My friend who is due around Jan 1st, has the same issue..! So, It was nice to be able to chat maternity clothes for a while!

What I Miss: I know, I must sound pathetic but I miss alcohol!

Cravings: Nothing, in fact I get full so fast right now.. I'm going to have to start eating smaller and more frequent meals.. I get sick if I eat too much!

Exercising:  Now, That I am back home visiting I have been slacking in this department! So, hopefully tomorrow I will be visiting their local gym for a workout! Though, I did some yard work and that was definitely a workout!

 
Symptoms: uh! Just upper back/shoulder discomfort!!! It could also be this cold weather..that I'm not use to..

Total Weight Gain: We will learn this Nov 22nd..our next OB appoint! Till then, keep exercising!

Gender: Who knows at this point... !! I've given up! 1 weeks & 2 days!!  We are getting close!

Sleep:good and bad...neck/shoulders are soo sore!

Movement: A lot of movement, in fact my Mother was able to feel it last-night!!! I can't wait for Mr. Southbay to fly in on Friday and hopefully get a chance!

On a Positive Note: I feels good to be home around family!! My parents were so excited to see how much I have grown in person!

A Message To Our Darling: Oh Little One, you are moving so much! Today in church I couldn't believe  how much I could feel :) We are so excited to see you on the monitor next week!!!!!

***I posted a poll! Located TOP left!!  What will the gender be? 
Please vote!!!! ***

Darling's 18th Week Update

Bump Pic!

This is me in my baggy work scrubs!

Little Darling's Size: A sweet potato, approx 5.6  inches long!! And he or she is twisting, rolling, punching and kicking,

Countdown: 154 Days to go!  Due Easter :)

Clothing: Wearing the same thing...heading back east this week..so I will be trying out my maternity jeans! ahhh...

What I Miss: umm..the norm..wine :) going out for happy hour!!!

Cravings: maybe sweets? or is that just because the holidays are coming up?!

Exercising: Still hitting the gym...going for a couple mile walks on the strand with Mr. Southbay or my friend... its so nice to get out for fresh air!

Symptoms:a bit of low back pain...i take a nap after work...but that usually does the trick! Umm crazy allergies lately...

Total Weight Gain: We will learn this Nov 22nd..our next OB appoint! Till then, keep exercising!

Gender: Who knows at this point... !! I've given up! 2 weeks & 2 days!!

Sleep: pass two nights haven't been good..prob because when Mr. Southbay is home I can't sprawl out.. :) He made the comment.. "We need a king size bed!"  I need room these days!

Movement: HOLY FLUTTERS!! Mr. Southbay isn't able to feel it yet..but I sure can!

On a Positive Note: I'm heading home (Back to PA) this Tuesday and I can't wait for my parents to see my bump!! Just spending quality time with them and the pups! I miss my Kingston!

A Message To Our Darling: I can't believe how much you are movin and groovin! I know you are there! I can't wait to see you on the monitor again! Just two more weeks love!

***I posted a poll! Located TOP left!!  What will the gender be? 
Please vote!!!! ***

Mid-Week Ramblings

I can't believe its Wednesday! This week has been flying by :) Tonight my friend and I went for a beautiful walk on the strand! The sunset was gorgeous!! 

It's an evening like tonight..I truly feel blessed to live by the ocean and be able to witness these special moments.

Mr. Southbay and I have been going back and forth on names..it hasn't been easy! So, we made a list with our recent list of possibilities! I'm sure that list will be changing... but nonetheless, we are excited to see what people vote for..we made it public to all thebump.com users! I think in the end, we won't announce our decision till the birth of our Little Darling. We must keep something a surprise :)
If you want, click on the button located at the top left of the page & vote!

And to end this short post... a picture of my friends little girl, her name is Dolly! Oh, I just can't get enough of her!

 I think she is saying.. "I'm done walking, I want to go home but I still love you!"